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“I didn’t deafen you?” he asked with a twinge of humor in his tone.
“Nope. I think my bones melted from all that pleasure.”
He eased away from her, leaving her feeling chilled and empty. He pulled gently on her shoulder and she rolled over to face him. He curled her into him and held her tight. She’d never been so thoroughly claimed, her heart still soaring.
“I want to tell you something,” she whispered, kissing his chest.
“You can tell me anything, sweetheart. We’re heart-matched mates. You’re mine and I’m yours.”
She lifted her head. “I feel so close to you. It’s never been like this for me before.”
He purred and hugged her a little tighter, kissing her forehead. “Me either. I’m so glad you came into the bar tonight, Mercy. It’s only been a few hours, but I can’t imagine my life without you in it.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. You’re well and truly stuck with me.”
“Good.” He chuckled and laid his head on the pillow. “You’re stuck with me, too.”
She stifled a yawn as she settled her cheek on his biceps. Her life had changed drastically in just a few short hours. She’d gone looking for a good time and had found her heart.
ChapterFive
Barron woke slowly, loving the way Mercy felt in his arms. She fit perfectly against him as if they were made for each other, and he supposed that was how it was meant to be. He wondered how many lions had chosen to be mate-matched instead of waiting for their heart-match, and how he might have missed out on Mercy’s sweet perfection if he’d tried to go the arranged-mating route.
It also crossed his mind that there were probably lions who’d felt drawn to a human or another supernatural creature and had ignored the drive to mate with them because they didn’t want to be exiled from their pride. It hadn’t even crossed his mind to put Mercy aside. And after their explosive mating, when he’d felt joined to her all the way to the center of his being, he knew he’d made the right choice. Pride or not, Mercy was everything to him, and their family would be a pride all on their own.
His cat was suddenly alert. Someone was walking up the stairs between Mercy and Ree’s apartments. He let his cat out a little more to enhance his hearing, wondering if Duke was with Ree. As the key unlocked the door with a click, he heard the unmistakable sound of crying, even after the door was shut.
He glanced at the clock, finding it just after dawn. He knew that Mercy and Ree were close, and she’d want to know what was going on. Nudging her gently, he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and murmured, “Sweetheart, your sister is crying.”
It took a few more nudges and soft touches before his deeply sleeping beauty opened her eyes and smiled at him. “Hey.”
“I heard Ree come up the stairs outside a few minutes ago and she was crying.”
Mercy’s eyes widened and she sat up on her elbows. “You’re sure?”
He nodded.
“Damn, I wonder what happened?” She kissed his cheek and smiled at him. “Thank you for waking me. Do you want to come with me so I can check on her, make sure she’s okay?”
“Of course.”
They dressed quickly and he followed her out of the apartment.
“Ree?” Mercy called through the door, knocking twice. “Are you okay? Barron said he heard crying.”
“I’m fine,” came the muffled reply.
“You don’t sound fine.”
“Are you going to leave me alone?”
“Not until you open the door.”
Barron folded his arms and pondered why Duke wasn’t with the human.
As if on cue, his phone rang and Barron pulled it from his pocket and saw Duke’s name on the screen. He sent the call to voicemail and then texted Ree’s apartment address to him. He tucked his phone back into his pocket without Mercy noticing.
The door unlocked and swung open, and despite the tracks of tears down her cheeks, Ree tried to look as if she was fine.
